About Me
Born and raised in Scranton, I am thrilled to have opened my practice in Clarks Summit in 2017 after completing my education and training throughout the Lehigh Valley, Philly, and locally. My office moved to Dunmore in summer 2024.
Outside of my work, my most important role is being a mom. I sometimes joke that I'm lacking in "impressive" hobbies to share when asked (you won't find me glazing sculptures on the weekends). I mostly spend my free time investing in friendships, gardening (with varying degrees of success), reading, and taking walks outside when the fickle NEPA weather permits.
Personally and professionally, I am passionate about social justice and the crucial role that social equity plays in the mental health of our community members and, thus, the wellness of our area in general.
Click here to read the Times-Tribune "Woman of the Week" article featuring my practice!
Education + Teaching
I graduated magna cum laude from Temple University's honors program and psychology honors program, which teaches research and writing skills that I still use to this day. I went on to earn a Master's degree and Doctorate in Clinical Psychology from Marywood University, an APA accredited program.
In recent years I have taught undergraduate and graduate-level courses at several universities. The courses I have taught have been focused on the research and practice of therapy and clinical supervision.
I have also supervised doctoral students' therapy work at every level of their training. While I am not providing supervision currently, it is a passion of mine that I hope to offer again in the future.
Training
Since opening my practice in 2017, I made it a priority to continue educating myself by regularly attending conferences and trainings and consulting monthly with other psychologists. Most recently, I completed extensive training and consultation with an expert supervisor to become certified in Family-Based Treatment for eating disorders in kids, teens and young adults. I am also trained in Exposure and Response Prevention (ExRP) for pediatric OCD by the University of Pennsylvania.
Prior to opening my practice, I completed my doctoral internship (accredited by the American Psychological Association) and postdoctoral residency at Lehigh University's Counseling Center from 2015-2017. There, I provided assessment, individual therapy, and group therapy services to a diverse array of bright, motivated college students. My passion for feminism, social justice and women's healing lead me to work with the Office of Multicultural Affairs, the International Student Office, and to become the counseling center's liaison to the Women's Center on campus. At the Women's Center, I provided workshops and educational events on body image, eating disorders, feminism, sexual assault, and relationship health. Through that work, I received many referrals for eating disorder and sexual assault cases, which allowed me to deepen my expertise with these issues.
While in my doctoral program, I received training in several other university counseling centers, community mental health centers, an inpatient psychiatric hospital, and an agency where I worked with children with Autism Spectrum Disorder.
What my Practice Focuses On
Teens + Young Adults
I began working with college students very early on in my training. I often found myself wishing I had been there to support my clients during the rocky high school years I heard so much about in sessions. When I opened my practice, I knew I wanted to open my doors to teens so that they could enter college or the work force equipped with healthier communication, coping and relational skills. I hoped this might help them avoid some of the trauma and challenges I was seeing with my young adult clients.
Adolescence and early adulthood are the periods of life when most of us begin to learn how to take care of ourselves, cope with stress, and create meaningful relationships. It can also be a stormy time in which some of those important lessons get interrupted by trauma, family issues, bullying, or even our own thoughts. I see it as an honor to walk alongside my young clients as they navigate the challenges of these phases of life. I strive to help them in coping through those challenges in the healthiest way they can.
Girls' + Women's Issues
Those who know me know that I am passionate about two things: Beyonce and women's issues. Throughout my journey as a psychologist, I am continually fascinated by the unique struggles that impact the mental health of women.
Are you wondering what kinds of struggles I am referring to? Here are some examples:
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Research suggests that girls' self-esteem begins to drop as early as age 8 as compared to boys' self esteem (and it never fully recovers in older years).
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In my practice, anecdotally I hear most women report their first negative, self-hateful body image thoughts developing around that same young age.
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Historically, a higher number of women have been diagnosed with eating disorders and depression as compared to men (though more men than ever are being diagnosed with EDs as of late).
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Hormonal fluctuations for women experiencing menstruation, pregnancy, postpartum and menopause vastly impact the daily functioning of half of our population- and yet it is rarely discussed in any helpful way with medical providers or in sex education classes.
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Some studies suggest that 1 in 7 new mothers (and 1 in 10 new dads) experience postpartum depression; anecdotally, EVERY new mother I speak with reports major shifts in their mindsets, relationships, work lives, and mental health within the first few years of parenthood. Yet, there are very little resources in our country to support mothers' mental health or work-life balance.
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We also know there is a significant wage gap between genders (where white women make 84 cents and women of color make 56 cents for every dollar a white man makes, according to Forbes) that impacts the independence, self-efficacy and upward mobility of women in our society.
Women are rarely given the opportunity to explore the impact of issues like cultural pressures, gender norms, hormones, discrimination, and role transitions (e.g., becoming a wife, mother, caregiver to a parent, etc.) on our mental health throughout our lives. It is my goal as a psychologist to make space for these explorations with my clients and to help them navigate their lived experiences in the most empowered way possible.
